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Every week Illustration Friday has a challenge for a specific word. It is a great way to showcase your work and a wonderful opportunity to meet lots of wonderful people! Anyone can join in with their entry to Illustration Friday. I so much enjoy doing this challenge. This week is Worn. This vibrant, colorful painting of Worn shows this bubble at a young and tender age and then again when the bubble is very Worn out.Â I bet you can tell which is which!Â I encourage you to check Illustration Friday out! Lots of fun people and paintings!Â Thank you for stopping by!!

Recently were Part I,Â Part II, Part III, and Part IV in this art marketing series – this is all in response to Sue O’Kieffe of Sacred Circle Mandalas (http://sacred-circle-mandalas.blogspot.com) who recently wrote me “i am curious to know out of all the ways you sell your art, which is the most profitable for you and which is the most enjoyable?” I have been getting some good feedback from various people that this is being helpful to them.

What a great question, Sue!!Â I know some other artists sometimes read my blog – I hope everyone will chime in – this could be very helpful to us all!Â I am really looking forward to hearing from others too!Â We have already done an overview of offline selling (much more to be said about that!), online selling from a shop where you the seller ship directly to your customer, online selling from a shop where the site produces the merchandise and ships directly to the customer and an overview of Etsy.

Today we will focus on one online shop (1000 Markets) where you the artist (and seller) ship directly to the customer.Â Check back in Part II to refresh your memory of some of the pluses and minuses of this method of online selling if you like. I have several online shops where I ship directly to the buyer – there are LOTS to chose from.Â I will give you details about my 2 current favorites and tell you why I like them.Â They are Etsy and 1000 Markets.Â These are links directly to my shops – it is easy to go to the main pages from there. Some artists have other favorites and I hope you (they) will post about them in the comments!Â Yesterday we looked at Etsy and today will be 1000 Markets.

This Art Card, ACEO from my 1000 Markets Shop showcases my vibrant, colorful painting of Reflections in Blue III.Â 1000 Markets is my other favorite online place to sell where I ship directly to the buyer.Â You can see that they also have room for the description to capture interest, details of what one is selling, and also the various views of your item. (Refer to yesterday’s post if you want more on this.)

1000 Markets has a similar concept to teams – but these are called Markets.Â Each Market is focused on a theme – whether it be ACEOs, Photography, Hats, the 60’s …. here is where you can see them all – there are tons of Markets!! Like Etsy, you have your own shop … then you can join (or apply) to Markets to team up with others to promote and market together.Â Again, like Etsy, anyone can join 1000 Markets – you don’t have to sell to join this site. One does have to have their shop approved once it is set up – before it can go public.Â But that is probably a good thing to make sure things are a reasonable quality and to make sure it is not an shop that is selling illegal copies of paintings.

One great thing about the Markets as opposed to teams (Etsy) is that each Market has its own marketplace you can go.Â At Etsy, VAST (Visual Artists Street Team) does not have a place where buyers can go to see what different team members sell.Â 1000 Markets gives each Market a marketplace.Â Here is the marketplace for ACEOs – Art Cards, Editions and Originals.Â This is a team I belong to and they are wonderful and active.

The Markets have another level of visibility and promotability that I don’t think the teams at Etsy have. This is part of why I like them so much.Â And the Market structure and the set-up of the marketplace for each Market give another level of interaction with the customer.Â Even my own shop at 1000 Markets has more built-in tools for promoting myself as an artist.Â One’s shop cannot go public until you have a good amount of information there – it also protects the customer to make sure things are interesting.

People seem to feel that 1000 Markets has incredible potential.Â It is fairly new and supposedly they are going to promote it well.Â Perhaps it is more art-friendly than Etsy.Â I enjoy it quite a bit!!Â I like that the Markets I belong to have a real marketplace where we are promoting our work through the Market directly (unlike Etsy) …Â I like how the team can discuss things together right there … in structured forums and not just through email.

Now I have not made a sale there yet … but I like how it works a lot.Â I need to get going on marketing my shops again … so hopefully my sales in general will pick up again.Â I have not spent as much time on 1000 Markets as I have on Etsy – I don’t know its potential as well.Â Â I like the look and feel of 1000 Markets. I enjoy it a lot!Â (Sue, your second criteria.)

I also have a shop at ArtFire – I have a free shop so I can have only 10 items.Â Also, they do not promite my shop like they promote the paid shops.Â I would love to hear how some others like ArtFire … I know a lot of people have started shops there … the jury seems to be out on whether ArtFire is good to be at. I have sold one item there – from someone that I know from other parts of the internet. Â I have a shop at iCraft.ca – Creativity without Borders.Â I have sold one item there – to someone that I never met before iCraft.

So I recommend both Etsy and 1000 Markets as the best for me so far.Â I welcome hearing from others what your experiences and thoughts are!!Â We may differ for sure!Â I hope that we can help each other know the strengths of each shop.Â Please feel free to ask questions to get more information … thanks for coming by!!

Recently were Part I,Â Part II and Part III in this art marketing series – this is all in response to Sue O’Kieffe of Sacred Circle Mandalas (http://sacred-circle-mandalas.blogspot.com) who recently wrote me “i am curious to know out of all the ways you sell your art, which is the most profitable for you and which is the most enjoyable?” I have been getting some good feedback from various people that this is being helpful to them.

What a great question, Sue!!Â I know some other artists sometimes read my blog – I hope everyone will chime in – this could be very helpful to us all!Â I am really looking forward to hearing from others too!Â We have already done an overview of offline selling (much more to be said about that!), online selling from a shop where you the seller ship directly to your customer, and online selling from a shop where the site produces the merchandise and ships directly to the customer.

Today we will focus on one online shop (Etsy) where you the artist (and seller) ship directly to the customer.Â Check back in Part II to refresh your memory of some of the pluses and minuses of this method of online selling if you like. I have several online shops where I ship directly to the buyer – there are LOTS to chose from.Â I will give you details about my 2 current favorites and tell you why I like them.Â They are Etsy and 1000 Markets.Â These are links directly to my shops – it is easy to go to the main pages from there. Some artists have other favorites and I hope you (they) will post about them in the comments!Â I have decided to break this post into 2 parts … the length is way too long to read I think … so tomorrow will be 1000 Markets.

This is a framed print from my Etsy shop that showcases my vibrant, colorful painting of Conundrum I.Â If you check out this link, you will see that I have different views of this collage.Â Most of the shops allow you to have several images of your art.Â I have the image itself, the print matted and the print framed.

If you notice, I also have a short story or description of the painting.Â This gives one a way, a hook,Â to bring the customer into the image … it helps draw someone into the picture and perhaps enhances their experience of our artwork.Â Given that our collectors are collecting us, “the artist,” besides the painting … it is useful to reflect to them our way of looking at this image.Â Of course, people can always have their own relationship with our painting … but this can be useful.Â Most if not all of the shops allow you to entice the collector in this way.Â Of course, one would also put other details about the item to inform the buyer.

But what makes Etsy different?Â The question some of you are waiting to hear answered.Â One of the best things about Etsy is the teams that are there.Â You can join (or apply) to teams that interest you.Â Some of the teams really work together to market and support each other.Â Teams can be based on various interests – where one lives, what kind of work one sells, one’s age, one’s special interests … the list goes on and on.Â Take a peek here to look at the teams (there are over 450).Â I started to sell at Etsy once I got active on a couple of teams.

Through the teams one becomes more 3-dimensional … and remember, people are buying the artist, not just the art.Â Many, but not all, of my sales have come from relationships I have built by being active in the Etsy community.Â To get back to Sue’s question – Etsy is where (by far!!!) I have made the most money from online sales where I directly ship to people.Â I have a fair amount of sales.Â Many of them are for smallish amounts, but for quite awhile I had a steady flow of sales.

Another wonderful thing about Etsy is treasuries!Â Here is the link to the treasuries – they are called “Curated, Shopping Galleries.” Anyone who is registered at Etsy can create a treasury.Â One chooses 12 items and makes a mini-gallery – often with a theme.Â Most of my sales from people who didn’t know me at all have come from treasuries … they are a great marketing tool!

Downsides of Etsy – one has to be registered at Etsy to buy an item.Â Many sellers have requested a method to allow buyers to just drop in and buy … freely!Â There are so many different shops now that one needs to work to stand out.Â Art is not the best seller at Etsy – in many ways crafts have tended to sell better there – though the artists are working to change that.Â The other shop owners at Etsy (and the buyers too) are part of what is great at Etsy!!Â I have a how-to get started at Etsy if you want me to write up that post here – I don’t think I have posted it yet – I wrote it for the Artists Resource site a couple of us had started. We can certainly talk more about Etsy on another day … and feel free to make comments and I will do my best to anser them.

So I recommend Etsy as a place to open a shop for sure.Â It has gotten some good publicity.Â I welcome hearing from others what your experiences and thoughts are!!Â We may differ for sure!Â I hope that we can help each other know the strengths of each shop.Â Please feel free to ask questions to get more information … thanks for coming by!!Â I will post the 1000 Markets in the morning – it is already written – I just broke this post into 2 to make it more readable.

Sue has started selling her lovely mandalas!!Â Check it out!! Sue has a great newsletter she just started too.Â It is easy to sign up for it when you enter (if you like – no pressure).Â Thank you for checking Sue’s giveway and mandala’s out!! How are you doing? Thank you for stopping by!

Every week Illustration Friday has a challenge for a specific word. It is a great way to showcase your work and a wonderful opportunity to meet lots of wonderful people! Anyone can join in with their entry to Illustration Friday. I so much enjoy doing this challenge. This week is Drifting. This vibrant, colorful painting of Drifting shows this bubble Drifting around into the stratosphere!!Â I encourage you to check Illustration Friday out! Lots of fun people and paintings!Â Thank you for stopping by!!

Yesterday was Part II in this series and the day before was Part I – this is all in response to Sue O’Kieffe of Sacred Circle Mandalas (http://sacred-circle-mandalas.blogspot.com) who recently wrote me “i am curious to know out of all the ways you sell your art, which is the most profitable for you and which is the most enjoyable?”

What a great question, Sue!!Â I know some other artists sometimes read my blog – I hope everyone will chime in – this could be very helpful to us all!Â I am really looking forward to hearing from others too!Â We have already done an overview of offline selling and online selling from a shop where you the seller ship directly to your customer.Â Today we will talk about the other kind of online shop.Â After that I will talk about specifics. This is a framed tile from CafePress that showcases my vibrant, colorful painting of Inner Flow II.

Yesterday we covered selling online when the customer orders directly from you the seller – whether from your own website or blog or from one of the numerous online shops where you can list your work.Â You ship directly from the buyer and they pay you directly.

After selling for awhile from these types of shops, I discovered another type of online selling.Â There are shops where I can upload my own images from my paintings onto the site of the shop.Â Â They then can print their merchandise with my image when someone wants to purchase it.

WOW!Â What a concept!! They print, they ship, they bill, they deal with breakage and replacement, they deal with bounced payments, they deal with returns.Â Sounds like a good deal to me!

There are ways that this does work incredibly well … I prepare the image of my painting (which depending on the shop can take quite some effort), then upload it (some shops upload more quickly than others), I put in descriptions and tags (depending on the shop), decide which types of items I will be selling this painting on … and list this painting in the shop.

Actually, it makes sense to decide what you want to place the image on first – because preparing the file depends on what item it is going on.Â Also sometimes there are issues with color and such, depending on the type of object on which you have them print your painting,

Some shops sell only prints of an image – that is, they print on paper (or canvas, etc) – a print that you could frame.Â That is something that I sell myself from my own home.Â But they are able to sell the print with many choices of printing surfaces and lots of different choices in framing.Â They are also able to print more inexpensively than I am able due to economies of scale.

Other shops sell lots of different merchandise.Â So I can have my paintings on mugs, tiles, cards, shirts, postage (real US postage), journals, shoes, caps … the list keep getting longer as these stores offer more choices in merchandise.Â So this is a great way to keep my images on THINGS – something I have wanted to do for over a decade.

They do the printing … and they PRINT ON DEMAND.Â That is, they print my painting on a mug, only when some orders one.Â I don’t have to buy 500 mugs with 1 image, pay the printer, store them at my house, ship them when someone buys one, absorb the cost when one breaks … you get the idea.Â They have all that hassle.

The trade-off?Â I don’t see the mug unless I buy one … so I am not sure of the quality printing and not sure how my color looks on their mug.Â They get the bulk of the money for the sale.Â They will have a “Base Price” – that is the price I would pay for buying my own work – then I can set an amount higher than that.Â That way, when someone buys a framed tile, then I will get a certain amount of money credited to my account.

Ah, money credited to my account … that raises another issue.Â Usually with these kind of shops, you don’t get paid that often.Â Many times it will take awhile for the money to accumulate – and you don’t see that money until … well, each shop has a different agreement on how they handle the money.Â Some artists find this very aggravating.Â Also the amount I make on each sale is fairly small – especially when you look at the time I put in preparing the product.

I LOVE that my paintings are on merchandise that you can buy and use every day at home.Â I so wanted that to happen.Â Some of the other downsides?Â I haven’t developed a relationship with you … you may not remember who the artist is unless I put my name or website intp the painting – in a readable way.Â Â One woman has bought 50 cards of my Conundrum I painting (in 3 different orders) – all I know is her first name, town and state.Â I cannot fillow up with her as a potential customer.Â Clearly, she seems a satisfied customer – but she is not really MY customer. That is part of the trade-off.

Next I will cover the specific shops and move toward Sue’s original question. It helps me think to have written all this down and I sure hope it helps you!!

Tomorrow will be Illustration Friday and then I will return to the marketing (or maybe Sue O’kieffe’s giveway and then marketing).Â Today is my birthday and it is decade changing.Â Thanks for all your good wishes!! Thank you for stopping by!!

Yesterday was Part I in response to Sue O’Kieffe of Sacred Circle Mandalas (http://sacred-circle-mandalas.blogspot.com) who recently wrote me “i am curious to know out of all the ways you sell your art, which is the most profitable for you and which is the most enjoyable?”

What a great question, Sue!!Â I know some other artists sometimes read my blog – I hope everyone will chime in – this could be very helpful to us all!Â I am really looking forward to hearing from others too!Â Yesterday I gave an overview of offline selling. Today is the overview of one type of online selling – the post got long enough to break the online selling into 2 days. After that I will talk about specifics. This real US postage from Zazzle showcases my vibrant, colorful Fanciful Animal Images painting of Freckles in Flowers II.

There are 2 basic ways I sell online. The way I originally started selling online was that I create the art and then sell the item to the customer directly (often through a store).Â Once a customer chooses an item, they pay for that item and then I ship it directly to them.Â Once they get the product, if they bought through a shop, often they will leave feedback (hopefully positive!) and I leave feedback too.

This is lovely to have the direct contact with the buyer.Â They can contact or email me to ask questions beforehand.Â They can ask if I can make a change if they want.Â It is often very personal and friendly. This way I end up with their address and usually their email also.Â If they don’t mind, I have a way to contact them when I do get around to creating my newsletter.

Depending on the shop, I can get paid in several different ways.Â This could be another post sometime – there are multiple ways one can get paid – depending on the circumstances.Â If people would like, I can write about that sometime soon. One benefit of getting paid this way is you get your money for the purchase relatively quickly.

If I sold the item through the shop, the store usually takes a percentage of the sale price.Â In many shops there is also a listing fee.Â Most of the different payment methods also charge a fee for the transaction.Â These are some of the costs of doing business online.

One must also take the item to the post office (or know beforehand how much something costs to mail).Â If something gets lost in the mail, it is your (the seller’s) problem.Â Then you have to deal with the hassle and probably replace the item for free.Â So you are also doing the customer service. BUT you are BUILDING a RELATIONSHIP with the customer – which everyone says is crucial to being a successful artist.

This is getting long enough that I am breaking this into 2 parts … I like reading shorter posts myself.Â Tomorrow I will talk about the other way I do online selling. Thank you for stopping by!!

Sue O’Kieffe of Sacred Circle Mandalas (http://sacred-circle-mandalas.blogspot.com) recently wrote me “i am curious to know out of all the ways you sell your art, which is the most profitable for you and which is the most enjoyable?”

What a great question, Sue!!Â I know some other artists sometimes read my blog – I hope everyone will chime in – this could be very helpful to us all!Â There is a handful of sites that I use regularly and really enjoy.Â I am really looking forward to hearing from others too!Â This is mug from CafePress showcases my vibrant, colorful bubblescape painting of Violet Mist.

Today I am going to give an overview of the ways I sell my work offline – and what works about these ways and what doesn’t.Â Tomorrow I will give an overview of the online ways I sell my art. The next day I will talk about specific sites and venues and what I like. (This post was getting too long and I know I prefer to read shortish posts). But I will probably write them all today so they hang together.

There are 4 basic ways I sell – 2 offline and 2 online.Â Locally I sell to stores or have items on consignment.Â This is great because there is no running to the post office to send things off.Â Consignment doesn’t work as well as an outright sale of course because there is no money paid to me upfront and I may get my merchandise back with stickers and such or other damage, which gives me more work to deal with.Â I love selling my work locally and having people come up to me saying they have seen my work in a specific place and they like it.Â I am a big supporter of the local economy.

Of course in a rural area, there are only so many appropriate stores to sell to … and the local market is smallish – our whole county is only 70,000 people.Â I have gone to a bigger distance (I have sold in 3 states) but then the mileage eats up that much more profit.Â So it is a wonderful piece of the mix – but not enough to sustain my business.

The other local, offline way I sell is at art or craft fairs.Â I have not found my stride in this venue yet.Â My work hasn’t sold all that well at the local, inexpensive craft fairs.Â Art hasn’t tended to sell as well as functional items there.Â People don’t seem to be too much in the market for art at these things.Â The ones that are inexpensive represent low risk financially – yet they are also the ones that I am less likely to sell art at.

The expensive ones that cost a substantial amount (hundreds of dollars and up), I am leery of for me – I have never tried them.Â Some people have made these kinds of fairs a cornerstone of their art or craft business.Â I am concerned about such a big investment of time, energy and money. Also, many people say that market has changed substantially … yet I am sure that many artisans are still doing quite well.

For me personally, part of what doesn’t work well at art and craft fairs is the carrying things to the fair and the needing to be there to sell.Â As many of you know, I have substantial health issues, and this type of event wipes me out for a good week.Â That doesn’t seem like a good trade-off.

Yet last holiday season the Artists of Franklin County put on an Art Fair and it worked quite well for us.Â There was no entrance fee and we were competing with other artists.Â The networking was fabulous and we made more sales than we usually have.Â Part of what I think needs to happen is figuring out how to get more repeat buyers … they love my work and buy something to support me – but sometimes I think then that is that.

So it is great to potentially know my customers locally and to support the local economy.Â It is wonderful to meet the store owners and customers face to face and have that personal relationship potentially.Â Delivery is local.Â Those are big pluses.Â Tomorrow I will give an overview on online selling. Thank you for stopping by!!

The local artists’ group, Artists of Franklin County, had our monthly meeting this month.Â It was a pleasure that someone else chaired, prepared the agenda, sent out the reminder notice, set up the next date and will write the minutes.Â This is great news for the viability of the group!

Your suggestions were very helpful!!Â Susan Elkin helped me pull together the paintings, prints and merchandise – to have a good selection but not too many.Â I wrote all your suggestions on a piece of paper and went through and looked at them to see how to include them.Â Then I wrote a brief outline, starting as a child, and going through “where from here.”Â Susan let me practice twice on her … both times it was different.Â Today was yet another version of course – but still using the same (very brief) outline.

It was a small group but they said they really enjoyed it.Â They let me talk for quite awhile and then started throwing lots of questions at me.Â It was interesting – most of the people stayed for close to an hour after the meeting ended and kept talking about ourselves.Â I think that was a good indication that it was helpful to the group.

For me it was useful to see I have a story and that it is interesting to hear. I could do it again with a lot more ease.Â I can also see that places that I can work on to clarify what I might want to say.Â Whew!Â So now I feel more prepared to go talk … I think I need to think more about how to talk about my work in greater detail … the process and what it means to me.

This is one of my paintings on merchandise that I brought today to show as an example.Â This vibrant, colorful painting of In the Garden is now on a tile in my CafePress Shop.Â Â Here is the link for this lovely tile.Â I think it is pretty cool – I hope you like it!Â Â In the Garden is also available in many different sizes. Email me if you would like to get In the Garden as an Art Card, ACEO for $6.Â Just ask!

Every week Illustration Friday has a challenge for a specific word. It is a great way to showcase your work and a wonderful opportunity to meet lots of wonderful people! Anyone can join in with their entry to Illustration Friday. I so much enjoy doing this challenge. This week is Unfold. This vibrant, colorful painting of Unfold shows this blurb Unfolding into a star!!Â I encourage you to check Illustration Friday out! Lots of fun people and paintings!Â Thank you for stopping by!!

Some of you know I have coordinated the local artists’ group, Artists of Franklin County, for 4 years.Â I have been cheer leader, chair, coordinator, minutes taker of the group and coordinator of our AWE Project (Artists Window Exhibit).Â The last meeting we had a great discussion about it being time to share the responsibility – at last there is a stable core group that is able and willing to step up and make the group run by ALL of us. We had been taking turns making presentations of our work as artists and whatever we wanted.Â One person in particular had never done this – ME.Â Most other people had already.Â Everyone in the group decided it was my turn to present.Â Someone else is chairing the meeting and taking minutes.Â Seemed reasonable to me. But with the illness and death of my cousin … this totally dropped out of my mind.Â The wonderful person who has volunteered to chair reminded me of the presentation.Â I would just as soon postpone it .. but the meeting is built around it … so I think I should do it … but I sure am looking for suggestions!Â Thanks! This vibrant, colorful painting of Ocean Dreams is now on a mug in my CafePress Shop.Â Â Here is the link for this lovely mug.Â I think it is pretty cool – I hope you like it!Â You can also get this at my Etsy Shop as a framed print or an Art …[CLICK TO READ MORE]